FAQ Categories: Whale Watch Q&A

Whale Watch Q&A

Unofficially, whale watching season runs from December 1 – April 30. But you may also see the whales before and after those dates. In 2017, for example, the whales arrived in late October, and we started up our whale watch cruises on November 6th.

Although we cannot guarantee whale sightings, our captains will give out “sleeping whale passes” to all of our guests that are on a rare whale watch that does not see any whales. Our sleeping whale passes allow you to go again for free.

We welcome pregnant women on-board, as long as they are comfortable. For pregnant women, our vessels are the best, as they provide the smoothest sailing experience. We do, however, always recommend to consult your Doctor beforehand to ensure they approve.

Although all of our vessels are Coast Guard certified to be able to hold more passengers, we limit the number of guests that can join us for each activity in order to maintain the best experience and comfort for our guests.

Kaulana -145 maximum capacity, however, we do not go out with more than 100 passengers; often less.

Lahaina Princess – 99 maximum capacity, however, we do not go out with more than 80 passengers; often less.

Our Captains thoroughly check the weather for each tour-if they determine the weather to be too bad to go out in and need to cancel the tour, we try to contact you as soon as possible, and can offer a full refund or the option to reschedule. It’s important to leave a good contact number or email so we can get a hold of you if we need to.

Our captains check the weather for each tour, and determine the trip based on their reports. We often have localized passing showers, so it may seem like poor weather where you are, but won’t actually affect our trip in any way. Trust your Captain!

Each person is different, and we cannot predict if you will become seasick or not. Chances of getting seasick are higher if you are prone to motion sickness such as car sickness or air sickness. When in doubt, take preventative measures!

Take a seasickness preventative beforehand. While on the boat, make sure to have access to fresh air, and make sure you can see the horizon at all times. Also avoid the lower deck area and restrooms if you are feeling ill. Please inform our Captain and crew if you are feeling ill.

Yes, we do. We sell Anchor Bars for $5 at the check-in booth at the harbor. Anchor Bars are a more natural (whey crisps, whey protein isolate, blueberries, fiber syrup, almond butter, brown rice syrup, vegetable glycerin, vanilla extract, sea salt, and ginger) form of nausea relief. It works in 15-30 minutes, and lasts for 3-4 hours. We’ve had rave reviews about their effectiveness.

If you are having a celebration, please let our office staff know. Although you may bring cupcakes or cake (the shorter the better, because of wind), our resources are limited, and we do not have candles available on-board.

No, we do not offer transportation. However, there are many alternative methods of transportation, including asking if your hotel has a shuttle that goes to Lahaina harbor, the bus that will drop you off at Wharf Cinema (across from the harbor), and Uber/Lyft.

As long as your wheelchair can be folded up/not electric, our crew will do their best to accommodate wheelchair passengers by assisting with boarding and finding seating. Depending our your mobility, seating may be limited to the lower-deck, as all of our boats require using stairs to get to the top-deck. We ask that passengers, with reduced mobility, remain seated while the boat is under-way. Please be aware that restrooms are located on a lower-deck at the bottom of a ladder. If you have any questions, please contact our office to inquire further.

A cane or crutches can be used to assist in boarding the vessel, however once on board they cannot be used and must be stored safely. There are railings and handholds throughout the vessel. Our crew members are able to assist as well.

They are primarily grey, with some areas of white. Oh, and they’re big. Huge, in fact. The North Pacific Humpbacks are the fifth largest whale species on the planet and can grow to 60-feet long and weigh between 25 – 40 tons.

They come to mate, give birth and nurture their calves. Hawaii is the only state in the country where they will mate. It’s believed the humpbacks are drawn to Hawaii for its warm waters, underwater visibility, varying ocean depths and lack of natural predators.

Females are pregnant for roughly 11-12 months before they give birth. The calves are 10-to-12 feet when they are born and usually weight between 1 and 1.5 tons. The calves live off their mother’s milk for about six months, drinking up to 100 pounds of milk per day.

They do! Normally the first to arrive are the mother whales who are nursing their calves. Next up is the juveniles, then the adult males, followed by adult females. The last to arrive are the pregnant females. The pregnant whales bring up the rear because they feed and nourish themselves until the very last minute up in Alaska.

They basically go to two different areas. A four-island cluster comprised of Maui, Molokai, Lanai and Kahoolawe make up the first area. The other area, called the Penguin Band, is a section of shallow water about 25 miles southwest of Molokai. That said, whales have been spotted by residents and visitors on the Big Island, Oahu and Kauai in recent years.

In 1993, there were an estimated 6,000 humpback whales in the North Pacific Ocean. Of those, about 4,000 came through Hawai’i. Since the signing of the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, which banned commercial whaling, that number has increased. Scientists estimate there are now roughly 23,000 humpback whales, with about 12,000 – 14,000 of those coming through Hawai’i each year.

They survive mainly on small fish, plankton and tiny crustaceans. What’s interesting is they never eat in Hawai’i’s waters. They spend all summer eating in Alaska, then store up the food as blubber, which they then use to fuel their winter trips to Hawaii.

Humpback whale songs are known for the complexity of beauty. The songs were first recorded in the 1950s by researchers on Oahu using hydrophones developed by the Navy. It’s believed the humpbacks sing to attract females for mating purposes, yet the males sing during non-mating seasons, as well, putting that theory into question. Other theories say whales sing to communicate with one another, to protect their territory, and/or they use it as a type of biosonar.

Commonly called breaching, a study published in January, 2017 showed that humpbacks are more likely to breach when they are far apart (2.5 miles or more,) while tail or fin slapping occurs more frequently when they are together. This suggests that the humpbacks breach for long-range communication versus simply water slaps when they are near other whales.